Wheeling Nailers Weekly Report, Jan. 15

Last Week

Wed. 1/10 Adirondack Thunder 3 @ WHEELING NAILERS 6Bourbonnais (unassisted)Meurs (Tolkinen, Morrison)McMullan (Milan, Turner)Gardiner (Schulze, Francis)Brown (Josephs)Gardiner (Sorkin, Brown)Morrison- 37/40

Fri. 1/12 Norfolk Admirals 3 @ WHEELING NAILERS 4 (overtime)Meurs (Zink)Tolkinen (Meurs)Brown (Meurs, Rissling)Bourbonnais (Meurs)Stevens- 2/4, King- 24/25 (W)

Sat. 1/13 Norfolk Admirals 2 @ WHEELING NAILERS 4Milan (Gardiner, Sorkin)Campagna (Zink, Schulze)Brown (Meurs, Fick)Campagna (Tolkinen, Josephs)King- 37/39

Last week, the Wheeling Nailers continued their magnificent play on home ice, collecting three victories. On Wednesday night, the Nailers got things going quickly, as Riley Bourbonnais scored 1:09 into the contest against the Adirondack Thunder. Garrett Meurs and Ross McMullan helped Wheeling build a 3-1 lead at the end of two periods. In the final stanza, the home team put the game away, as Reid Gardiner returned from the AHL with a pair of goals, and former Adirondack forward Cam Brown also found the back of the net for a 6-3 final score. Adam Morrison made 37 saves. On Friday night, the Nailers fell into a quick hole, as the Norfolk Admirals went ahead 3-0, with two of the goals being scored in the opening two minutes of play. However, Wheeling rallied back. Garrett Meurs started a memorable birthday with a goal, before setting up Zach Tolkinen to trim the margin to one. The 25-year old then assisted on Brown's tying marker and Riley Bourbonnais' overtime winner, as the Nailers came out on top, 4-3. On Sunday afternoon, Dan Milan netted the first goal for Wheeling, but the Admirals took a 2-1 lead, forcing the local squad to come back once again. J.C. Campagna tied the tilt with 8:51 left, before Brown slipped in the winning tally with exactly two minutes to go. Campagna tacked on his second of the day into an empty net, as the Nailers were victorious, 4-2. Will King made 24 and 37 saves respectively, backstopping the two wins over Norfolk.

WesBanco Arena has provided a tremendous home ice advantage for the Nailers, who swept a four-game homestand, improving to 5-0-0 at home in January, and 13-6-1 in the Friendly City this season. The 13 home wins are tied for the second most in the Eastern Conference. Garrett Meurs celebrated his 25th birthday on Friday with a four-point game, the sixth such game by Wheeling player this season, and third this month. Meurs also had a four-point game on October 14th in Greenville. The Ripley, Ontario native has either scored or assisted on three of the club's four overtime goals this season as well. The Nailers have earned 11 comeback wins this season, and four of those have been comebacks from multiple-goal deficits. Will King has earned standings points for the team in two of his relief appearances this season (1-0-1), picking up the win on Friday. J.C. Campagna posted a two-goal game in his second contest with the team on Saturday. Cam Brown is on a five-game goal streak and six-game point streak, with each of his last four goals being scored during the third period. Wheeling finished its second season series of the year on Saturday, and will not play any more home games against South Division opponents in the 2017-18 regular season.

This Week

Fri. 1/19 WHEELING NAILERS @ Manchester Monarchs, 7:00Sat. 1/20 WHEELING NAILERS @ Worcester Railers, 7:05Sun. 1/21 WHEELING NAILERS @ Worcester Railers, 3:05

This week, the Wheeling Nailers will play their only three road contests during a 14-game span, as they will make their first trip of the season to New England. On Friday night, the Nailers will look to pull within one point of the North Division lead, when they visit the Manchester Monarchs. Wheeling took down Manchester 7-4 on January 5th, getting four-point games from Riley Bourbonnais and Chris Francis. The Nailers last invaded SNHU Arena on February 14, 2016. On Saturday and Sunday, Wheeling will check a new state off of its list, as it will play its first ever game in Massachusetts, visiting the Worcester Railers at DCU Center. The Nailers and Railers split a two-game set in November, with both sides skating away with 4-3 victories. Worcester currently sits in fifth place in the North Division, trailing the Reading Royals by nine points for the fourth and final playoff spot. 12 of Wheeling's remaining 33 games will be played against Manchester and Worcester.

Upcoming Home Games/PromotionsWed. Jan. 24- WesBanco Winning WednesdayFri. Jan. 26- Frosty FridaySat. Jan. 27- Princesses & Pirates Night w/ Princess & Pirate ParadeSun. Jan. 28- Faith & Family Day, Presentation by Team Chaplain Gary Piganell, Music by Frank McGary, Post Game Skate with the Team (even-numbered players)Fri. Feb. 2- 90's Night, Starring Alfonso Ribeiro, Nailers Wear Special Jerseys

Nailers LeadersGoals: 16, Hunter Fejes & Reid GardinerAssists: 27, Cam BrownPoints: 38, Cam BrownPenalty Minutes: 94, Garrett MeursPlus/Minus: +13, Garrett MeursWins: 8, Sean MaguireGoals Against Average: 2.91, Will KingSave Percentage: .914, Will KingShutouts: 0

North Division Standings1. Manchester Monarchs 22-13-3-1, 48 pts.2. Adirondack Thunder 22-16-1-2, 47 pts.3. WHEELING NAILERS 21-15-3-0, 45 pts.4. Reading Royals 21-17-2-0, 44 pts.5. Worcester Railers 15-16-3-2, 35 pts.6. Brampton Beast 15-17-1-2, 33 pts.